tcbass

I'm a meat fisherman. I love catching fish, but I also love catching fish for dinner. Because of that I'm usually focused on catching a few fish for the deep fryer. So minimal success is also something I strive for, even though I can have a great time and not catch any fish. Because of this I tend to stick to tried and true methods that are catching fish if I haven't caught a few eaters yet. I will fish with topwater longer though even if it is less successful just because I love catching fish on topwaters and am willing to not catch some because of that choice. Well, I was doing pretty good on Senkos and a Ragetail Toad today and caught a few eaters. I also caught one on my Strike King Tour Grade Swim Jig with Swimming Senko on it as a trailer. I picked up my brother and decided to try something else while he used the Ragetail Toad and Senko as evening set in. I bought two new lures this year because of this forum, a Strike King KVD Splash and a Strike King KVD Sexy Dawg. I've had great success with the Sexy Dawg and it's quickly became one of my favorite lures. It had also been fairly windy all day (my nemesis) so it was hard to position the boat and hard to use topwaters. The wind was finally dying down. Well, I used the Splash (a popper lure) and after about 15 casts caught about a 1/2lbs. bass. Then it got too weedy to use. Same with the Sexy Dawg, because when they are cast they sink down and catch weeds and don't retrieve right. So I decided to try something else. I've had minimal success with buzzbaits and that's because I almost never fish at night. Only during a guys weekend fishing trip are we ever out at night and I have had success then. I do have 2 Cavitron's on order, a black one and white one but they aren't in at Cabelas yet. So I grabbed my new Booyah $3 Counter Strike buzzbait and added the piece of tubing over it so that I could use my Mustad Fastach and not have it slip all over the place. My first cast I caught a nice 1.5lbs. bass. Second cast I had about a 3lber on that my popped off as my brother got the net. I caught 3 more bass after that and lost 2 more. All were at the boat and all of the bass were about 1.5lbs. I didn't realize buzzbaits consistently catch BIG fish! My brother then put a buzzbait on and finally caught a big one. I netted it and it weighted 2lbs. I did lose 2 at the boat though and they seemed to be hooked good at first and I set the hook good when they first bite. Is there a secret to keeping fish on the line when using buzzbaits? So, tried 2 brand new lures today and had great results. Sometimes being forced to use a different lure or finally trying a new lure that you've had collecting dust in your tackle box can be a lot of fun and a great success, especially if used at the right time. I'm not sure a buzzbait would work at 3pm in the afternoon. I did notice that the fish liked it when I slowed down the retrieve. So hopefully my Cavitrons will come in shortly. I ordered them on the advice of posters on this forum. They are said to have one of the slowest retrieves and plane the quickest. For those that fish buzzbaits, what do you think is the best time: Early Morning or Evening?

You guys have an interesting problem. I use Gamakatsu Twistlock EWG hooks, TrokarTwistlock EWG Hooks and some other brands and have never had a problem. I always lose a leg long before that becomes an issue. lol

How do you flip it and tweak the feet?

Great move. I like green pumpkin or green pumpkin white belly. Check out these threads: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/142166-problem-with-ragetail-toads-who-do-i-blame-big-o/ http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/136614-tip-missing-this-great-aspect-of-the-ragetail-toad-catching-fish-on-the-sink-sit/

I have both and have had far more success with the Rage Toad. However, to be fair because of that I fish the Rage Toad way more. I want to start using the Zoom Horny Toads to see how well they do. The Zooms are considerably cheaper I think.

I don't want to put them back in the bag because they will still be on the hook. Can you just put them in a seperate different tackle box or will they dry out/deteriorate?

The Bass Pro is normally $49. The Cabelas Tournament ZX is normally $69 but on sale for $49. I know that Plueger and Dawai make Cabelas reels for them. Don't know who makes reels for Bass Pro. What is the better reel?

My friend was looking for a low priced baitcasting reel and ordered a Bass Prp Tourney Special baitcaster. He was wondering if it was a good reel for the price range he's looking at which is about $50. This reel was $49.

Why?

My friend set up his wife with a white GY Hula Grub on a jig and she killed the bass.

Great review! Thanks. I will pass on from others that they say Zman Elast Z plastics will melt to other plastics so keep them separate!

My nemesis for underwater lures is Gary Yamamoto. He built one of the greatest lures of all time, the Senko. It has built in obsolescence. It catches tons of fish but you need to keep on buying them because they either get lost by the fish throwing it, lost during the cast, or eventually destroyed from the build up of damage from fishing it. (Although I might have solved this part of this problem by using Gamakatsu Superline Offset EWG worm hooks and laying the Senko next to the bottom of the hook and using two small zip ties to hold it on - it's worked well so far, lost far less Senkos). On the other hand, my KVD Sexy Dawg topwater lure which has caught me a ton of fish this year could theoretically last my lifetime if I don't lose it to a fish or broken line, and it may only need sharpening of the hooks or replacement hooks at the most. Well, my most productive topwater lure is the Ragetail Toad. And like the Gary Yamamoto Senko it has built in obsolescence. It could last through 10 bass or get a leg bitten off on the first cast. But man, does it catch fish. I've caught countless bass on them and even lost a 40" musky at the boat that hit the lure at the boat last week. It catches fish during the sink/drop and retrieve, unlike most topwaters which normally only catch them on the retrieve. Is my nemesis for topwater lures Big-0? I am going on a guys fishing weekend next week and this is what happened. The problem with Ragetail Toads is I can't fish without them! O, well, Ragetail Toads and Senko's are like toilet paper. Even if you buy too many, there is no doubt that you will eventually end up using them all and needing to buy more. Either way my boat will always have 2 lures in stock no matter what and this is Ragetail Toads and Gary Yamamoto Senkos.

I bought some the Strike King swim and shiners bc they were 1/2 off at Dicks. But there things are huge at 4" inches. Do people normally shorten them up?

What color?

I'm not really familiar with those. Which ones does he use?

Well, I'd say two things then: 1.) Line: switch to braid with far less stretch....as long as your ok with braid on the rest of your lures. 2.) Set Up: push the hook all the way thru the frog and then skin the tip of the hook to cover it. What kind of frog was it? Ragetail Toads are great solid body frogs.

Sounds like you did everything right with the hookset. I use a Cabelas Tournament ZX rod (usually $100 and often on sale for $69) fast action heavy with a Abu Garcia Revo Rocket 9:0:1, and 30lbs Power Pro. I like the Cabelas rod because it is heavy but feels like a medium heavy which is really nice. It's got a lot of backbone which is important. You didn't say if you just tied your hook on to the frog or what. You might want to check what knot you used, how much tag end you had, if the line was older, frayed, worn, or what not. If you used a snap or swivel snap that could do it also.

I fish in MN so that might be a factor in what I should use as a trailer. I believe I have a pack each of Zoom Super Chunks, Zoom Chunks, Strike King Rage Craws, Strike King Rage Chunk, Strike King Rage Bug, Strike King Rodent, Swim Senko, Senko Hula Grub, and Cabelas Twin Tale grug (their version of the Strike King Menace). Here are my Siebert Swim Jigs: I got: 2x Watermelon Black Flake head in Blue Gill skirt wire tied in 1/4oz. 2x Silver Black head in Bloody Shad skirt wire tied in 1/4oz. 1x Watermelon Black Flake head in Blue Gill skirt wire tied in 3/8oz. 1x Silver Black head in Bloody Shad skirt wire tied in 1/4oz. So, being in MN, with lakes that are clear and stained, what trailer should I use and what color? In order from best to least, what would you choose?

What type of lure is a Rapala Scatter Rap? It's not a squarebill, right? Is it just a crankbait?

I've always had great luck with frogs (Ragetail Toads) all season and this year got a KVD Sexy Dawg and have been very successful so far.

Not to change the subject but what kind of plastics and cranks? Are your plastics weighted or unweighted?

Cool. I couldn't find the link to do that. It's also Green Lake, MN, which I've fished a long time ago.

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/field-notes/video-scuba-diving-meets-bass-fishing?dom=fas&loc=contentwell&lnk=read-more http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZ8g3xOQfhY#t=18

Switch to KVD Sexy Dawgs in perch color! I've been doing awesome with them this year.

I fish shallow 99% of my time. Ragetail Toads between docks and Senko's under docks traditionally. This year done well with a KVD Sexy Dawg topwater. Actually had 2 muskies go after it last outing and lost a 40" muskie on a Ragetail Toad at the boat where he bit. Gonna try more swim jigs (Seiberts), spinnerbaits (Terminator), buzzbaits (Cavitrons and Booyah) and crankbaits (Rapala Scatter Rap shallows).